Perfect
by Casy Dee
Summary: Connor and Abby have just returned from the past... Sometimes you just need a little love and tenderness.  Much fluff ensues.


**A/N: So this story was born of a need for soothing gentle fluffy thoughts. Some of my fellow writers and I are positively mired in angst… so I made with the fluffity fluff fluff. Alas, I had planned for kittens to be in this too, but maybe next time.**

**Set shortly after their return from the Cretaceous. It is not from any particular story I've written. Please enjoy. **

**

* * *

**

Perfect

Connor was so nervous he was shaking… not that unusual for him, where Abby was concerned. A date. Finally. All that time in the Cretaceous had served to make them a couple, and now that they had returned to their own time they could finally live like a real couple and do real couple things. He'd promised her a proper date, and after a few days of recovery had passed he'd asked Abby out to dinner.

The idea of taking Abby out both frightened and excited him. He'd be out with a girl more gorgeous than he thought he could possibly deserve; never in a million years could he have imagined it after all the times she'd shot him down, _and _she loved him. That seemed like the true miracle to him… but she did.

He'd been worried that Abby would change her mind about him once back in their own time, but Abby had laughed when he'd haltingly admitted that it had been bothering him. Before they had been trapped together, he probably would have stayed quiet and just let it fester and build, and Abby would have gotten angry and impatient… but they'd both grown up since then. She'd kissed him softly and explained that Connor was all she'd ever wanted, even if she'd been too stupid and stubborn and frightened to admit it.

They'd had to learn how to truly communicate whilst stuck together in the past, and they had both solemnly vowed to make sure they didn't retreat into their old ways. Connor still put his foot in his mouth and exasperated Abby on a daily basis, and she still lost her temper and patience, but they loved each other enough to work to overcome the problems as they came... and it _was_ work. It was worth it, though. He'd never been so happy, and Abby felt the same.

They had wasted far too much time already, and they both knew that life was a precious gift not to be wasted on posturing and pretending. They had both nearly died more times than fate should have granted them reprieve from, and they both knew that everything could be swept away in an instant. He loved her, and she loved him, and stuff everything and anything that tried to get between them.

After all they had endured together, before and after being stuck in the Cretaceous, a simple date shouldn't make him feel like this… he knew Abby more intimately (and in more ways than one) than he previously thought it was possible to know _anyone_. He knew her body and soul, better than he knew himself. This was just a date, after all… but it was their _first_ date.

Tonight, after being home only four days, they finally felt they could relax and just celebrate. It was time to make good on Connor's promise, and he wanted it to be perfect. They had found Danny today, thanks to Connor's repair of the anomaly opening device, and he was home safe and had fared better than they had. He'd only been on his own about a month, sharing _Site 333_ with the family of hominids that lived there.

Abby had said it made her head hurt when Connor tried to explain how it was possible when they'd spent a year in the Cretaceous and he came back _after_ they had. She'd ended up rolling her eyes and halting his explanation after he said the words 'space time continuum.' She was just happy the whole team was safe and together again, and he agreed wholeheartedly. Well, the whole team, save for Sarah… but she had accepted her dream job in Egypt and he wished her the best.

He looked at himself in the mirror critically. He hoped Abby would like the clothes; it was a little different than his typical kit, but he thought he wore it well. He'd found the tan and brown herringbone trousers with a deep brown tuxedo stripe down the outside seam at a charity shop and had pieced together the look from there. He'd bought the mocha pinstriped double-breasted waistcoat in another, and a he'd bought the new (not even secondhand, this!) honey-yellow button down shirt and mocha silk cravat at a proper men's clothing store.

Shopping for clothes intentionally was a new thing for him; he usually picked up pieces here and there as they caught his fancy and then threw together what he thought looked good to him. He'd spied a shopping bag on the counter yesterday, and Abby had batted his hands away and said he wasn't allowed to look at her new dress until their date. He figured if Abby had gone to the trouble of buying a new dress for him, it was the least he could do to try and look good for her. He hoped it had worked.

He ran his hands through his dark hair in an anxious gesture, and wondered if he should have gotten it cut. His hands looked naked; it was odd not to wear his trademark fingerless gloves. Connor had missed having them in the Cretaceous, although he had taken to wearing the leather hand guard continuously on his left hand. He pulled on his brown knit pair after a moment's hesitation. He surveyed himself critically in the mirror; with his beard gone he almost looked like his old self again. He thought this was probably as good as he was likely to get.

He'd shaved for the first time since they'd been back a couple of days prior whilst Abby watched. She'd smiled and kissed down the line of his jaw afterwards which led to them christening the bathroom sink in their new flat properly. So far they had managed just about every room, table, chair, piece of furniture, counter...wall... in the entire flat. There was something to be said for passion bred from years of suppressed sexual tension. Connor and Abby were both hell bent on making up for lost time.

Connor fidgeted nervously while he waited for Abby to tell him he was allowed to come downstairs. She had been in the bath for _ages_ and he'd had no idea what she could possibly be doing in there for so long. He thought she looked beautiful just as she was.

"Connor. I'm ready," Abby called up the stairs.

She held her breath as she waited for Connor to see her. She hoped he liked it; she hadn't tried to do the girl thing in years. She'd done her nails in metallic gold polish to complement her new dress as she'd waited for the deep conditioning treatment to work its magic on her hair. She'd been tempted to cut her hair off again, but Connor loved it so much she left it. It was long enough to pull back out of her way, so it really was no more trouble than it had been when it was short. She had it admit, she thought it looked rather pretty as it fell softly to her shoulders, once again shining and clean.

She'd freshly shaved her legs and put lotion her skin and used perfumed bubbles in her bath and _wow_ she was entirely too nervous. She almost felt silly going to this much trouble when they had already moved past the giddy and new stage of dating in their relationship. Okay, they had skipped it entirely, but that was beside the point. Connor had seen her at her absolute worst and still thought she was beautiful; a little perfume and high heels wasn't going to make a difference to him now. She told herself that it didn't matter if he was unimpressed; what she really wanted to have a nice evening out with Connor, and she wanted to feel pretty while doing it. Still… she hoped he liked it.

She heard him coming down from the spare bedroom in the loft and held her breath. Connor looked amazing... but most definitely still Connor with all his quirky Connor-isms. She smiled as she took in the cravat, waistcoat, and fingerless gloves; that was her Connor, for sure, even if he looked a little more refined than usual, and a little less like he'd dressed himself by pulling random items out of the closet blindly.

She'd spent hours searching for the right thing to wear for their very first date, and she was glad he'd tried to reciprocate. She appreciated the gesture, even as unnecessary as it was. The off-shoulder turquoise silk charmeuse cowl neck dress she'd bought for the occasion was soft and blousy on top with delicate flutter sleeves and then it drew in at her hips to fall in a fitted knit mini skirt that showed off her lovely legs. Feminine, yet edgy and terribly sexy, it was perfect. The dress was expensive, but they had quite a chunk of back pay built up. When she'd seen how she looked in it… like a real twenty-first century girl again, she'd decided she might as well splurge a little bit. She'd even worn a pair of gold snakeskin stilettos to complete the look. She couldn't even remember the last time she'd worn heels. She'd looked at herself in the mirror and she thought she'd get the sort of reaction she was hoping for from Connor.

She smiled uncertainly at his stunned expression, waiting for his reaction.

Connor jaw went slack before he closed it to swallow convulsively… she was the most lovely thing he'd ever seen. He tripped on the bottom step and almost fell into her.

"Abby! You look great! Really… beautiful," he smiled that big joyful smile that lit up his eyes and flashed his dimple and always made her have to smile back in return.

Abby compressed her lips so that she wouldn't laugh, but inwardly she was pleased that the sight of her had caused him to forget how to walk for a moment. She took a moment to preen for him, basking in the warmth of the admiration of the man she loved.

"I… I didn't shave today. It makes me look like a baby, so I didn't... Is that alright?" he started to pull at his gloves to take them off, "You look so great and I-" he stuttered.

"Connor," she stepped up to take his hands in hers, "It doesn't make you look like a baby. And it's fine, anyway. You look great, just as you are," she punctuated her statement with a soft kiss.

Abby didn't think Connor _could_ look like a baby anymore, clean-shaven or no. It wasn't just the scar above his eye or the toned muscle he'd gained surviving and doing his best to try and keep them both alive, either. It was more in his calm confidence and the depth and maturity behind his dark eyes. He'd survived the stuff of nightmares, and it had left its mark on him. She smiled up at him; it was cute to see him stuttering and uncertain again, though. She _must_ look pretty good.

Connor settled his arms around her and pulled her into a gentle hug, "I'm nervous," he admitted.

Abby chuckled, "Yeah, me too. Silly, aren't we?"

Connor laughed, "Come on. Let's go before they give away our table."

On the ride over, their thoughts echoed each other's. _Please, just for once… just one time… let nothing go wrong. Please._

Connor worried that a million things could go wrong or spoil it. Lost reservation, or they could have gotten it wrong… car breaks down… lost in the middle of nowhere… anomaly or some tragic disaster… It _would _be just their luck. _Please. Just once._

The restaurant was packed full of people and the tables were close together and the _noise! _Abby had to swallow back her protest at going inside. She wasn't comfortable around large groups anymore, and the thought of sitting in there with all those strangers made her skin crawl. Connor had gone to so much trouble to set this up, and she'd talked about eating here when they were stuck eating grubs and dino meat… it was thoughtful and sweet of him. Grand romantic gestures were not the norm for Connor; he was more of a spontaneous practical sort. She'd just have to smile and deal with it since he'd done this all for her.

She took his proffered arm as they entered, and if she was holding onto him a bit tightly he didn't complain. He looked so happy and proud of himself that she forced a smile. She could _do_ this.

"Special reservation for two, Connor Temple," he told the maître d' with a pleased glance over at Abby.

She shot him a confused look as they were led through the restaurant and out the back door. He grinned down at her and walked her down the brick pathway through the garden and into the large white candlelit gazebo and a table set for two. Abby was overcome; she blinked back tears furiously. She was _not_ a soft emotional thing and she _would not_ cry… but she wanted to. There was even a string quartet set up in one of the smaller gazebos that surrounded the large main one to provide them with dinner music. As Connor pulled out her chair for her and then sat across from her, they began to play.

She should have known. As if Connor would forget something like her aversion to crowds after their trip to a shopping center had ended with her in a full-blown panic attack. She'd been fine, albeit a little uneasy, until they ended up in a lift packed full of people. She'd been embarrassed, but Connor had been so gentle with her. He'd worked through his own claustrophobia, and he knew what she was going through.

"Connor… this is… how did you do all this?" she asked him.

"Do you like it?" he replied, never loosing the self-satisfied grin.

She nodded, "But it's so much… Conn, this wasn't necessary, you know."

He smirked and nodded, "I know, but first date should be special, yeah? Don't worry, next one will be video shop and take-away," he joked.

"That would have been special, as well. As long as it was with you," she replied, and it was worth the embarrassment of saying something so sappy to see the delight on his face at her words.

Love was about compromise, after all.

They ordered and ate and sipped wine and laughed. They still preferred each other's company to anyone else's; yet another miracle. Connor rose after the meal was cleared away and reached for her hand as the band played a waltz. She laughed out loud as he spun her round the gazebo and they danced until they were breathless. No one was out there to critique, after all. This was just about the two of them.

Connor motioned to the musicians to play something slower, and Connor enfolded Abby in his arms and pulled her flush against him. She sighed in contentment and smiled. It had been such a long road to get to where they were. They had wasted so much time.

"I love you, Connor," she murmured.

Abby didn't say it often… not the actual words. He'd get 'me too' or a smile or some acknowledgement, but not the actual words. Connor never minded, though. He knew how she felt, even if her feelings were hard for her to express, even now. When she _did_ say the words, she said them with such love and such honesty that it made his heart clench every single time. He closed his eyes and smiled. He'd gone to a lot of trouble to set up this evening, but he knew the truth of it. What made it special wasn't the setting, it was them… just them, together and happy and safe.

"I love you, Abby," Connor replied softly, pulling away to look into her eyes.

He must tell her that twenty times a day, but it sent a thrill through her to hear it each time. He never said it just in passing or as if they were just words to him. Every time, it was with a sincerity and a depth of feeling that soothed and comforted something deep inside of her that _needed_ to hear it. She closed her eyes and breathed him in.

No matter what would come, they'd had their moment… and it was perfect.

END

**

* * *

**

A/N: If the world ever let them alone and gave them the gift of a moment of serenity, this is how it might be. I hope you liked this and please do review?


End file.
